Regarding this posting that I did - there is an error, accidently hit
sent button before I could correct. Commissioner Hayes of the FDA
resigned in September 1983 not 1981. He then went to work for
Burson-Marsteller Searle's public relations firm. Hayes is then
unavailable to the press for the next ten years. This happened after the
approval of carbonated beverages. The Congressional Record on the point
of carbonated beverages (Protest of the National Soft Drink Assn) said
they used the wrong test when the right one was available, did not pick
up aspartic acid, used the wrong solution (a buffered solution instead of
beverage matrix), didn't test for breakdown products (a witches brew of
formaldehyde, formic acid (ant sting poison) and DKP (a brain tumor agent),
and didn't test for temperature elevation. At 86 degrees aspartame
liberates methanol in the can.
In November 1984 The Center for Disease Control reviewed 213 of 592 cases
of aspartame complaints. Ages of the complainants ranged from four months
to 77 years; 77% were between the ages of 21 and 60 years, 75% were
female, and 94% were white. Twenty-eight percent reported repeated
episodes of symptoms and 26 people experienced identical symptoms. Some
of the reported symptoms included: aggressive behavior, disorientation,
hyperactivity, extreme numbness, excitability, memory loss, loss of depth
perception, liver impairment, cardiac arrest, seizures, suicidal
tendencies, severe mood swings and death. The CDC recommended future
investigations of aspartame investigate the neurological and behavioral
problems and focus on symptoms as headaches, mood alterations and
behavior changes. Frederick L. Trowbridge adds an executive summary to
the report which conflicts with the information in the report. He
states, "Currently available information, based on data with limitations
as described in the report, indicated a wide variety of complaints that
are generally of a mild nature. Although it may be that certain
individuals have an unusual sensitivity to the product, these data do not
provide evidence for the existence of serious, widespread, adverse health
consequences to the use of aspartame." (Center for Disease Control,
Division of Nutrition, Center for Health Promotion and Education.
"Evaluation of Consumer Complaints Related to Aspartame Use." (November,
1984".
On December 21, 1988 Senator Metzenbaum issues a press release saying
senators should not approve the appointment of Sam Skinner as Department
of Transportation secretary without an inquiry concerning Skinner's
failure, as U. S. district attorney in the Northern Illinois District to
pursue allegations about fradulent testing of NutraSweet. Metzenbaum
raises the issue of Skinner accepting a position with Searle's law firm,
Sidley and Austin, during the time the FDA asked Skinner to review
allegations of fradulent safety tests by Searle and urges the Senate to
convene a grand jury to investigate the charges. (Sen. Howard Metzenbaum
press release of December 21, 1988) The district attorney goes to work
for the godfather?!
On January 25, 1989 Senator Metzenbaum issues a press release saying that
Skinner acknowledged he may have made mistakes in the NutraSweet
investigation, but Metzenbaum says he supports Skinner's nomination as
secretary of the Department of Transportation. Could this be the reason
that the FAA does not supply assistance in warning pilots of the many
grand mal seizures that are on record from pilots who had grand mal
seizures in the cockpit of commercial airliners from consuming NutraSweet?
On February 28, 1994 The Department of Health and Human Services report
on adverse reactions attributed to aspartame and lists 6,888 complaints
including 649 reported by the Centers for Disease Control and 1,305
reported by the FDA. Aspartame accounts for the majority (75.7%) of all
the complaints in the Adverse Reaction Monitoring System.
The report of April, l995 and list over 10,000 complaints. In June of
this year the FDA announced that they would no longer compile complaints
on aspartame. Most people don't even report complaints to the FDA, they
just stop using the product when they have a reaction. However,
complaints continue to come in by the thousands and are recorded by the
ASPARTAME CONSUMER SAFETY NETWORK, WORLDWIDE PILOT HOTLINE and MISSION
POSSIBLE. Sleeping are federal regulators who turn a blind eye and deaf
ear to complaints!
Betty Martini
Domain: betty at pd.org
UUCP: ...!emory!pd.org!betty
On Thu, 13 Jul 1995, Betty Martini wrote:
> LET'S SEE WHAT YOU MAKE OF THE FOLLOWING FACTS, AS REPORTED 4/20/95 BY
> THE DEPT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES ON
>> "SYMPTOMS ATTRIBUTED TO ASPARTAME IN COMPLAINTS SUBMITTED TO FDA*"
> *Some cnsumers described more than one symptom attriuted
>> Headache 1,847
> Dizziness/poor equilibrium 735
> Change in Mood 656
> Vomiting or Nausea 647
> Abdominal Pain & Cramps 453
> Change in Vision 362
> Diarrhea 330
> Siezures and Convulsions 290
> Memory Loss 255
> Fatigue, weakness 242 (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome?)
> Other Neurological 230
> Rash 226
> Sleep Problems 201
> Hives 191
> Change in Heart Rate 185
> Itching 175
> Grand Mal 174 (add to siezures, above)
> Numbness, Tingling 172
> Local swelling 114
> Change in activity level 113 (see Fatigue, above)
> Difficulty Breathing 112
> Oral sensory changes 108
> Change inmenstraul pattern 107
> Symptoms reported by less
> than 100 complaints 1,812 GRAND TOTAL: 9,737!
>> This catalogue of misery represents more than 75% of the complaints the
> FDA has received on any food additive. Now they've closed the reporting
> window, according to a report I received last week; they're not accepting
> additional complaints. When you smell smoke do you wait till the house is
> ablaze before investigating for yourself?
>> January 10, 1977 in a 33 page letter FDA Chief Counsel Richard Merrill
> recommended to US Attorney Sam Skinner that a grand jury investigate
> Searl for concealing material facts and making false statements in reports
> calling attention to studies on the effect of NSweet on monkeys & hamsters.
> February 2, 1977 Skinner is offered a job with Sidley & Austin, Searl's
> law firm and the case was dropped.
>> After overruling the findings of a public board of inquiry on 7/15/81
> to approve NutraSweet for dry products Dr. Arthur Hull Hayes, Jr, FDA
> Commissioner hired on with Burson-Marsteller, Searl/NutraSweet's\
> public relations firm as "Senior scientific consultant." Scientific
> Consultant for a PR firm: to understand that just think of an Art Director
> for a Pig Farm.
>> FDA = FATAL DRUGS ALLOWED!
>> Betty Martini
> Domain: betty at pd.org> UUCP: ...!emory!pd.org!betty
>>>